Latch



W. O. BURKE l June 26, 1951 LATCH :s sheets-sheet 1 Filed Sept. 25, 1946J'IlIlll/IlllllllllIlly/,111111,

June 26, 1951 W o, BURKE 2,558,233

LATCH Filed Sept. 25, 1946 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENToR.

W. O. BURKE LATCH Filed Sept. 25. 1946 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 W .0o. 2 Q 3 3 7w M2 6 a, M M j mw. w x

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INVENTOR.

- latch member rides.

Patented `lune 26, 1951 LATCH William 0. Burke, Roc tional Lock Co., Ro

of Delaware kford, Ill., assigno'r to Nackford, Ill., a corporationApplication September 25, 1946, Serial No. 699,331

12 Claims. 1

This invention pertains to latches, and while the principles thereof arecapable of embodiment in latches for holding various types of closuresin closed position, the embodiment here disclosed was designedparticularly for use on refrigerator doors.

In order to obviate air leakage and consequent heat losses, latches forrefrigerator use are required to be of a type which will hold the gasketin compressed condition to form an airtight seal around the margins ofthe door. latches for this purpose most commonly used are one of twotypes, i. e., spring latches and snap action latches.

In spring latches the latching member or bolt is continuously urgedtoward locking position, consequently the closing of the door requiresthe exertion of suilicient force to cause the retraction of the latchmember against the force of the springs by the incline of the strike upwhich the A weak spring requiring only slight closing force to overcomeit in closing will fail to hold the door snugly in sealed position,while a strong spring adapted to snugly hold the door requires anobjectionably vigorous slamming of the door in order to force the latchbolt up the incline of the strike against the action of the spring.

These disadvantages of the spring pressed latch are not inherent in thesnap action type of latch characterized by the employment of a type ofbolt and latch mechanism which, when the bolt is withdrawn from'latchingposition upon opening of the door, will be retained in that positioncommonly known as the cocked" position, thusrholding the action of thespring in abeyance until the latch is released or uncooked by engagement of a release element or trigger with a xed abutment on the doorjamb as the door reaches substantially closed position.

In the normal operation of the snap action type of latch, the retractedor cocked position of the latch -bolt is such that no retraction of thebolt is caused by the incline of the strike during closing movement ofthe door. Therefore, the closing force required to be exerted inswinging the door to closed position is very materially reduced overthat required to close a door equipped with a spring pressed type oflatch. Furthermore, since the entire compression of the main spring iseiected by the action of the handle in the unlatching of the door andsince the leverage afforded by the latching mechanism for thusretracting and compressing the spring enables this movement to beaccomplished with exertion of little'force, a stronger spring affordinga more snug closing and a more secure holding of the door may beemployed.

While the snap action type of latch enjoys a number of operationalladvantages over the spring pressed type, the snap action type hasheretofore been subject to the criticism that unless a positionalrelation of the highest accuracy between the latch and the strike issecured at the time of mounting and is maintained during the useful lifeof the latch, inconvenience and great dissatisfaction to the housewifeor other user ofthe refrigerator inevitably ensues. For instance, if, asthe result of inaccurately mounting or of the sagging of the door or ofthe frame during the life of the refrigerator, the position of thestrike with respect to the latch bolt is a tiny fraction of an inchremoved in one direction from its perfect position, the door will not beheld sufliciently snugly closed to adequately compress the gasket. Underthis condition air and heat losses will occur. On the other hand, if thestrike be a fraction of an inch out of position in the oppositedirection the bolt will be released from the strike by a p'ull upon thehandle and the door will be opened without cooking the latch. The latchthen operates as an ordinary spring pressed latch, but with a very heavyspring which requires an extremely vigorous slamming of the door inorder to bring it to closed position.

One of the primary purposes of my present invention is to provide alatch of the snap action type which will overcome the disadvantagesheretofore inherent in latches of this type by so constructing it that asubstantial variation in the relative positions of the latch and strikemay occur without adversely aiecting the normal operation of the latch.In other Words, a snug and secure retention of the door in closedposition and a positive cooking of the latch upon opening of the doorare both attained by my latch, even though the strike or the latch, orboth, may be substantially displaced from their normal operatingposition;

Another purpose of my invention is to provide a latch of the characterindicated, which will offer no substantial resistance to the closing ofthe door while the latching member traverses the incline of the strikeand then only a slight resistance occasioned by the tripping orreleasing of the latch trigger. As a consequence of this constructionthe door, even though of a large and heavy type, may be swung to closedposition with a minimum of effort.

Another object of the invention is to provide a latch which, when thetrigger is released upon closing movement of the door, will thereuponautomatically and forcibly pull the door into its final closed positionand retain it in that position with the gasket under substantialcompression suiiicient to prevent air leakage.

Another feature of my invention resides in the fact that during theinitial actuation of the handle to release and open the door the latchbolt remains stationary behind the head of the strike and resists allmovement of the door until the trigger mechanism is actuated, whichproduces instantaneous and almost simultaneous cooking of the latch andrelease of the door. The construction is such that release of the doorcannot occur without the cocking of the latch being performed. Thisinsures against failure to cock the latch with the resultant necessityfor violently slamming the door in order to close it against the actionof the strong spring.

Other desirable features and many of the inherent advantages of myinvention will be readily lappreciated as the same becomes betterunderstood by references to the following description when considered inconnection with the accompanying drawings.

Referring to the drawings,

Fig. 1 is an exterior perspective view of a refrigerator equipped withthe latch embodying my invention;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged view through the door looking at the latch alongthe line 2-2 of Fig. l;

Fig. 3 is a horizontal fragmentary view taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 9;

Fig. 5 is a transverse sectional view taken on the line 5-5 of Fig. l0;

Fig. 6, '1, 8, 9 and 10 are horizontal sectional views showingsuccessive positions assumed by the elements of the latch mechanismduring the final closing movements of the door; and

Fig. ll is a bottom plan view of a link element utilized in the latchmechanism.

Referring to the drawings more in detail, reference character IIindicates generally a refrigerator or other cabinet having a swingingdoor i2 equipped with a latch embodying my invention. The door, as willbe apparent from the drawings, is of hollow construction, comprising aninner wall I3 and an outer Wall I4. My improved latch, as will be laterapparent, is adapted to be mounted in the space between these walls. Thedoor is equipped along the margins of its inner face with a gasket l5 ofrubber or other yieldable material adapted to be compressed between thedoor `and the opposed face of the cabinet surrounding the door openingto provide an air-tight seal around the door opening.

Projecting from the face of the cabinet adjacent the side of the dooropening remote from the door hinges is a strike or keeper which may beof integral construction, but in the present instance is illustrated asbeing of the adjustable type comprising the mounting bracket I6 securedby screws or bolts I1 to the face of the cabinet and a hook I8adjustably mounted on the bracket and secured in adjusted position byone or more bolts or screws I8. The strike or keeper hook i8 is soshaped as to provide an inclined surface 2| directed outwardly andtoward the door of the refrigerator cabinet, and an inclined locking `orholding surface 22 facing inwardly or away from the door and plane ofclosure between the door and cabinet, the inclination being such thatthe surface 22 at the outer end of the hook is closer to the cabinetthan is such surface at places closer to the hook carrying bracket orsupport I6. The preferred inclination of the surface 22 through theouter wall I4 of the door with its inner end positioned in operativerelation to the latch and its outer end in position to be engaged by anabutment or wall 24 formed near one end of the handle 25 which' isfulcrumed upon pintle 26 mounted in the U-shaped bracket 21 attached tothe outer face of the door. The handle is biased into the position shownin Figs. 1 and 2 by a coiled spring 28 surrounding the pintle 26,movement of the handle under the influence of the spring being limitedby engagement of leg 28 withabutment plate 3I.

The latch, which is disposed within the door between the inner wall I3and the outer wall I4 thereof, comprises a sheet metal housing 32 ofU-shape in cross-section throughout a portion of its length whichincludes the inner wall or bottom 33 of the U. The outer end of thehousing is anchored by a pin 34 to a U-shaped bracket 35 which in turnis securely attached to the marginal portion of the inner wall of thedoor by a bolt and nut connection 36 or other suitable securing means.

The inner end of the housing 32 is supported upon a pin 31 extendingthrough the housing and through the spaced apart legs of a U-shapedbracket 38 secured by rivets, spot welding or other method of attachmentto the inner face of the outer wall I4 of the door. The housing 32 ofthe latch mechanism is in this manner securely attached near each end tothe door structure. so as to be immovably mounted therein.

A bell crank lever 39 of yoke form is pivotally mounted upon a pintle 4Iwithin the inner end of the housing 32, to position one arm constitutingan abutment plate or surface 42, in the path of the operating pin ormember 23, so that, when said pin is projected inwardly through theouter wall of the door by the handle 25, the bell crank lever 39 will bemoved from the position shown in Fig. l0 to that shown in Fig. 9.

The other or divided arm of the bell crank lever is connected-by a pin43 with a pair of links 44 extending longitudinally of the housing.These links are connected at the opposite end by a pin 45 extendingtransversely of the housing and movable longitudinally of slots 46formed in the housing walls. This pin 45 carries a pair of rollers 41adapted to travel along the wall 33 of the housing and between therollers a bar 48 is mounted at one end on the pin and projects parallelwith and between the links 44. The headed pin 31 extends through a slot49 in the bar 48 and slots 5I in the links 44 and serves to guide thisbar and these links in their reciprocatory movements and to limit theextent of such movement. A coiled expansion spring 52 surrounding thebar 48 is compressed between the pin 31 and the shoulders 53 formed onthe bar 48. This spring urges the links 44 and bar 48 to the left intothe locking or holding position of the parts illustrated in Fig. 10.

Each of a pair of short links 54 is also pivoted at one end upon the pin45 while their opposite ends are pivotally connected by a pivot pin 55to a link member 56 at one end of each of its link arms 56'. See Fig.11. At their opposite ends the link arms 56' are pivotally mounted uponthe transversely extending pin 34. Link member 56, which ls of U-shapewith an integral cross piece 66 joining the arms 56', may be made as astamping and such manufacture facilitates the formation of oppositelydirected lugs 50 which are struck outwardly from and substantially atright angles to the arms 56' at places intermediate of the pivots 34 and55. These lugs 50 form stops for the latch boltmechanism and serveanother purpose which will be explained hereinafter. The three pairs oflinks 44, 54 and 56' extending between the pin 43 of the'bell cranklever 39 and the pin 34 of the stationary bracket 35 act as a togglejoint mechanism in cooking and releasing the latch in a manner whichwill be later described.

Upon a pintle 51 extending transversely between the link arms 56 of linkmember 56 there is pivoted a trigger and bolt carrier unit designatedgenerally by 58, the trigger and bolt carrier unit or latch elementcomprising a pair of spaced apart side members straddling the .link arms56' and shaped to provide a release arm 59, a tail 6| and a bolt arm 62.A roller 63 is mounted upon a pintle 64 extending between the arms 62.The roller and the bolt arm 62 form in `effect the locking bolt of themechanism and, as

will be apparent, the bolt and the trigger are in this instance combinedinto a unit pivotally -mounted on the link arms 56.

A coiled spring 65 surrounding the pintle 51 the roller 63 beyond thepoint of the strike hook and bring the abutment arm 59 of the unit 58into engagement with an abutment 1| carried by the strike. There are, infact, two of these abutments, one at each side of the strike head, eachin position to be engaged by a corresponding release or trigger arm 59of the trigger bolt unit 'or latch element. The contact of the arms 59with the abutments 'H will, as the closing movement of the doorcontinues, tend to swing the unit 58 in a counter-clockwise direction.Since, however, the swinging movement about the pin 51 is prevented byengagement of the tail 6| with the wall 33, further closing movement ofthe door will cause the unit 58 to move in a counter-clockwise directionabout the point of contact between the tail 6| and the wall.33 as afulcrum, thereby imparting to the toggle link member 56 a clockwisemovement about the pin 34 to swing the pin 55 across the toggle joint ormechanism center line intersecting pins 34 and 45.

This movement to u'ncock cr release the trigger bolt is illustrated inFig. 9, from which, in comparison with Fig. 8, it will be observed thatthe counter-clockwise movement of the uni* 58 not only moves the axis ofpin 55 across tne ...nter

line between pins 34 and 45, but also causes the and interposed betweenvan abutment provided by an edge of cross-piece 66 between link arms 56'and an abutment 6l on the trigger bolt um't, urges the unit in acounter-clockwise direction into the position shown in Fig. 10, whereinthe edges 68 f of the element 58 are engaged with the stop lugs 50.

A second coil spring 69 is mounted on the pin 34 with one end engagingthe abutment 66 of a link 56 and the other end engaging the base of thebracket 35. This spring tends to swing the links 56 counter-clockwiseabout the pin 34so as to bias the toggle links into the cocked positionshown in Figs. 6 to 8, inclusive.

My novel latch is designed to operate in the following manner. Assumethat the outward pull upon the handle to open the door has disposed thetoggle links in the position shown in Fig. 8, from which it will beobserved that the pin 55 is disposed slightly inwardly of a lineextending between the axis of pins 34 and 45, it will be obvious thatthe thrust of the spring 52 will be resisted by the olf-center positionof the links 54, which cannot move clockwise about pin 45 because ofengagement with wall 33 of the housing and cannot move in the oppositedirection so long as they are not otherwise moved from their cilcenterposition. The trigger-bolt unit.58 is urged in a counter-clockwisedirection by the spring 65 so far as engagement of the tail 6| with thewall 33 will permit. This position of the parts is illustrated in Fig.6. Upcn closing movement of the door, the roller 63 will ride up theincline 2| of the strike until the point of the strike hook is reached,as illustrated in Fig. 7, but it will be observed that the onlyresistance to the movement of the door offered by engagement of theroller 63 with the strike 2| is the resistance necessary to overcome theforce ofthe light spring 65 and swing the trigger bolt unit 58 from theposition shown in Fig. 6 to that shown in Fig. '7.

Further closing movement of the door will carry of the strike and theroller 63 to assume a position considerably to the -left (viewing thesefigures) of the point of the strike hook and some distance inwardly fromand overlying the inclined holding face 22 of the hook I8.

This entire closing movement of the door thus far described, and whichis illustrated in Figs. 6 to 9 inclusive, takes place before the gasket|5 engages the face of the cabinet. No force to compress such gasket hasbeen applied nor has any force, other than a modcum, been required tocompress main spring 52 been required. The only material resistance thusfar to the closing of the door has been the slight resistance of thelight spring 65 to the rctative movement of the unit 53. It should beobserved that an opening in the inner wall I3 of the door is providedfor the reception projection therethrough of the belt arm and roller 65.This opening is preferably lined with a gasket of rubber or othersuitable material indicated by reference character 12.

When the toggle link has been uncocked by movement of the axis of thepin 55 across or over or off-center with respect to the line extendingbetween the axis of pins 34 and 45, the spring 52, which has been heldin compressed position by the toggle links, will project or thrust thelinks 44 to the left, viewing the figures, from the position of Fig. 9to that of Fig. 10, which movement will cause the pin 55 and the ends oflink arm 56 attached thereto to move cutwardly until they reach theouter limit or position at which time the lower edges 68 of arms 59 ofthe unit 58 engage with and are stopped by the lugs 5U, thereby bringingthe roller 63 into sharp engagement with the face 22 of the strike. Thenal movements of the parts into the position shown in Fig. 10 will causea. powerful pull to be exerted by the trigger bolt upon the strike,which will draw the door inwardly so as to compress the gasket-betweenthe door and the cabinet, as shown in Fir. 10,.without the exertion ofany manual force whatsoever in order to effect such compression of thegasket.

In the act of opening the door the latch is released from the keeper tofree the door and the mechanism is moved into cocked position in thefollowing manner.

An outward pull upon the handle 23 projects the plunger 23 inwardly toswing the bell crank 39 in a clockwise direction viewing the drawings tothereby straighten out or dispose in substantial alignment the threepairs of links constituting the toggle mechanism. During the movement ofthese links from the cocked position of Fig. l to the position ofsubstantial alignment of Fig. 9, the roller 63 of the trigger latch boltremains stationary in engagement with the inner face of the keeper hookto hold the door` closed. As the link member B Iswings counter-clockwisefrom the position of Fig. toward that of Fig. 9, the roller 63 will beheld by the spring 65 in engagement with the keeper hook, therebypreventing any clockwise opening movement of the trigger and boltcarrier or unit about pin 51 upon which the latch bolt carrier ispivoted. The reaction of the roller 63 in resting against the inclinedinner face 22 of the keeper under the inuence of spring 65 together withthe force exerted by spring 69 will cause the toggle to swing acrosscenter (offcenter with respect to the line of axes of pins 34 and 45) toits position shown in Figs. 6, 'l and 8 and to bring the tail 6l of unit58 into engagement with the housing 33.

When, however, the tail 6I of the bolt carrier or unit 58 is broughtinto engagement with the Wall 33 of the housing, further swingingmovement of the link member 56 in a counter-clockwise direction willcause the carrier or unit 58 to pivot in a clockwise direction about thepin 51 so as to swing the roller 63 clear of the keeper. This nalmovement of the link member 56, after the pivot pins of the toggle linkshave been brought into alignment by the pull exerted upon the handle,will be effected by the spring 69 tending to move the links from theposi-.ion of Fig, 9 to that of Fig. 8 to dispose the toggle off-centerwith respect to the line of axes of pins 34 and 45. In the position ofFig. 8 it will be observed that the axis of pin 51 lies inwardly of aline connecting the axes of pins 34 and 45, in which position the linksare/retained by the exerted force of spring 52. The latch is, therefore,in cocked position and will remain in such position until force exertedin a clockwise direction upon the trigger bolt by the abutments 1|during closing movemen'; of the door moves the links 56 outwardly tocarry the pin 55 across the line connecting pins 34 and 45, whereuponthe parts will be snapped by the spring 52 into the locking position ofFig. 1 0.

It will be observed that the maximum leverage of the toggle links isutilized to hold the door in a closed position, as illus .rated in Fig.10, thereby insuring adequate compression of the sealing gasket toprevent leakage. It will also be apparent that the maximum strength ofspring 52 is utilized to retain the latch in cocked position of Fig. 8,since in that position the spring 52 is under maximum compression.

Since the roller 63 of the latch bolt is retained by the spring 65 inengagement with the holding face ci' the keeper hook until the triggerlatch is swung about its pivot by engagement of the lail (il with thewall 33, and since this swinging movement, when it occurs, issubstantial in length and is effected almost instantaneously, it followsthat the accuracy of relative positions between the latch mechanism andthe keeper, heretofore essential in snap action latches, is not hereimportani. In other words, retention of the door in closed position andcompression of the sealing gasket are not dependent upon any cam actionor inclined wedging relation between the keeper and the latch and bolt,but, on the contrary the door will be held in snugly closed relation solong as the roller 63 engages any point on the inner face of the keeperhook. The point of engagement between that face of the hook and theroller is quite immaterial. Latching of the door in snugly closedposition is accordingly assured, notwithstanding a substantialmis-placement of the keeper from its theoretically correct position.

Likewise, cooking of the latch is insured, because the cooking iseffected by relative movements between the parLs of the latch ratherthan by any relative relation between the latch and the keeper. In otherwords, the cooking is dependent upon engagement of the tail 6l of thetrigger latch bolt with the wall 33, and not upon any relation betweenthe roller 63 Land the holding face of the keeper hook. Displacement,therefore, of the keeper to a substantial degree in either directionfrom its theoretically correct position will not render uncertain thecooking of the latch when the door is opened.

It is possible, of course, accidentally to trip the latch when the dooris open. In this case the lugs or stops 50 come into play to prevent thebolt carrier or unit 58 from swinging counterclockwise to a positionwhere it would become inoperative. The stops 50, being disposed in thepath of movement of unit 58 as it swings counterclockwise, engage theedges B8 of that unit and prevent its movement in such direction beyondthe relative position of the parts shown in Fig. 10. When this situationdevelops, a slight slamming action of the door is required, the boltroller striking the outer inclined face 2| of the keeper and being swungthereby about pivot 51, against the action of light spring 65, until thelatch keeper has been cleared. The action in such case is similar tothat of any conventional roller tripped latch. After closing the door,the latch will be in its normal operational position and, upon openingthe door, will resume its normal cycle of cooking open, etc.

While I have shown and described the structure of that embodiment of myinvention which at present seems preferable, it should be appreciatedthat substantial modification and variation in the structural detailsillustrated may be resorted to without departing from the spirit of theinvention as defined in the following claims.

I claim:

1. A latch, comprising a housing adapted for mounting on a door, atoggle mechanism carried by said housing, said toggle mechanismincluding a pair of links pivotally connected together by one end ofeach, the other end of one of said links being pivotally connected tosaid housing, a spring for holding said mechanism in offcenterpositions, a latch element pivotally mounted on said one linkintermediate of the pivot connections thereof, means for actuating saidtoggle mechanism to eiect the engagement of said element with a memberfixed to said door whereby said element is swung to released position topermit opening of the door, and means xed with respect to the door framefor swinging said element in a reverse direction upon closing movementof the door into latching position and for moving said toggle mechanismacross center.

2. A latch, comprising a housing adapted to be mounted upon arefrigerator door, a toggle mechanism disposed within and carried bysaid housing, a spring arranged to yieldably retain said mechanism inoir-center position, a latch element bodily carried and wholly supportedby said toggle mechanism and movable therewith andwith reedge of a wallof said housing for pivoting the latch element to retracted position,said latch element being also provided with an arm adapted, duringclosing movement of the door, to engage a stationary member mounted onthe door frame whereby said latch element is swung to move the togglemechanism over center in one direction, and means for actuating saidtoggle mechanism to move the same over` center in the opposite directionupon opening movement of the door to thereby cock the latching mechanismand hold the latch element in retracted position.

3. A latch, comprising a housing adapted to be mounted in a door, atoggle link assembly, including a slidably mounted link, a link mountedupon a substantially xed pivot and a link pivotally connected to each ofthe aforesaid links, disposed in said housing, a latching elementpivoted upon and bodily movable with the second said one of said links,said element comprising a pair of oppositely projecting arms adapted torespectively engage a wall of said housing and a stationary abutment toactuate said element and said toggle link assembly, a spring biasingsaid slidably mounted link in one direction, and manually operable meansfor moving said slidably mounted link in the opposite direction againstthe force of said spring. I

4. A latch, comprising a housing, a toggle link mechanism mountedtherein including a slidable link, a pivoted link and a link pivotallyconnecting said slidable and pivoted links, a latch element pivotallymounted on said pivoted arm adapted to latchingly engage with the hook of a keeper, an arm adapted to engage axed abutment and a tail adapted toengage a wall of said housing, a spring acting on said toggle assemblyto hold said latch element in latching position or in cocked position,manually operable means for actuating said toggle assembly to disengagesaid latch element from said keeper. and,

an abutment in the path of said element for releasing said latch fromcocked position.

5. In a latching mechanism for securing a closure member against acooperative member having a keeper with a latch engaging surface facingin a directionA away from the closure, a locking bolt carried by saidclosure member and mounted for limited rotary movements betweenkeeper-engaging and keeper-releasing positions,

spring means normally tending to rotate said bolt l towardkeeper-engaging position, means for moving the bolt to itskeeper-releasing position, means for retaining the bolt inkeeper-released position, means operative upon movement of said closuremember toward said cooperative member and to a predetermined positionwith respect thereto for releasing said retaining means, and meansincluding a spring independent of the iirst said spring means andautomatically operative upon vrelease of said retaining means for movingsaid bolt in one direction in its rotary path into keeper-engagingposition with components of force acting to thrust the bolt against saidkeeper surface in a direction substantially normal to the plane of saidclosure when the' closure is against said cooperative member.

6. In a latching mechanism for securing a closure member to acooperative member, one of said members having a keeper with a boltengaging surface facing away from the other 75 link, having an memberand the other member carrying a bolt vhousing and a bolt therein forlatching engagement with said surface, a lever pivoted in said housing,vsaid bolt :being pivotally supported upon said lever on an axis spacedfrom the axis of the lever pivot for movements with and relative to saidlever between keeper-engaging and keeper-releasing positions. meansincluding cooperative abutments on the bolt and said housing normallyoperative when the bolt is in keeperreleased position for retaining thebolt in such position until the bolt and keeper have been movedrelatively toward and beyond one another to position said bolt at apredetermined position past said keeper-engaging position by movement ofthe closure member toward said cooperative member, means operative whensaid bolt reaches said predetermined position for releasing saidretaining means, and means operative upon release of said retainingmeans for moving said bolt against said keeper surface in a directionrelatively opposite to that in which the bolt was moved in approachingsaid predetermined position. e' '1. In a latch including, a housingadapted to be mounted on either member of a body mem'ber having anopening and a closure member for said opening, and a latch bolt keeperadapted to be mounted on the other member, a toggle mechanism carried bysaid housing and movable to each side of dead-center, means normallytending to urge said toggle mechanism to oiI- center position in onedirection, means for moving the toggle mechanism toward olf-centerposition in the opposite direction, a latch bolt Wholly supported andcarried by said toggle mechanism and movable therewith and relativethereto, means, independent of the rst said means, normally tending tomove said bolt relative to said toggle mechanism toward keeper engagingposition, means operative upon movement of said toggle mechanism towardsaid offto be mounted on the other member, a toggle` mechanism carriedby said housing and movable to each side of dead-center, means normallytending resiliently to urge said toggle mechanism to off-center positionin one direction, manually operable means for moving the togglemechanism toward off-center position in the opposite direction, a latchbolt wholly supported and carried by said toggle mechanism and movabletherewith and relatively thereto, means, independent of the rst saidmeans, normally tending to move said bolt relative to said togglemechanism toward keeper engaging position, means automatically operativeupon movement of said toggle mechanism toward said olf-center positionin said one direction for moving said bolt relative to said togglemechanism toward keeper engaging position, and means for tripping saidtoggle mechanism to effect its movement across dead-center from saidoil-center opposite direction position.

9.' In a latch including, a housing adapted to be mounted on eithermember of a body member having an opening and a closure member for saidopening, and a latch bolt keeper adapted to be mounted on the othermember, a toggle mechanism carried by said housing and movable to eachside of dead-center, means normally tending to urge said togglemechanism to oifcenter position in one direction, manually operablemeans for moving the toggle mechanism toward oi-center position in theopposite direction, a' latch bolt bodily mounted on and Wholly supportedby said toggle mechanism and movable therewith and relative thereto,means normally tending to move said bolt relative to said togglemechanism toward keeper engaging position, means automatically operativeupon movement of said toggle mechanism toward said oil-center positionin said opposite direction for moving said bolt relative to said togglemechanism toward keeper releasing position, and means for tripping saidtoggle mechanism to effect its movement across dead-center from saidoffcenter opposite direction position.

10. In a latch including, a housing adapted to be mounted on eithermember of a body member having an opening and a closure member for saidopening, and a latch bolt keeper adapted to be mounted on the othermember, a toggle mechanism including a plurality of interconnected linkscarried by said housing and movable to each side of dead-center, meansnormally tending to urge said toggle mechanism to off-center position inone direction, means for moving the toggle mechanism toward olf-centerposition in the opposite direction, a latch bolt bodily mounted on andwholly supported by one of said links of said toggle mechanism andmovable therewith and relative thereto, means normally tending to movesaid bolt relative to said toggle mechanism toward keeper engagingposition, means operative upon movement of said toggle mechanism towardsaid off-center position in said opposite direction for moving said boltrelative to said toggle mechanism toward keeper releasing position, andcooperative means carried by said latch bolt and keeper and operableupon the approach of one of said members relative to the other formoving said toggle mechanism across deadcenter from said oir-centeropposite direction position.

11. A latch adapted to be mounted on either member of a cabinet bodymember having an opening with a closure member for said opening andcooperative with a latch bolt keeper adapted to be mounted on the otherof said members, said latch comprising a housing, a lever pivotallymounted by one of its ends on a iixedv pivot on said housing formovements of its other end relative to the housing toward and from saidkeeper, a latch bolt unit including a keeperengageable bolt pivotallymounted on a fixed pivot on said lever intermediate of the pivoted andopposite ends thereof and having its pivot axis substantially parallelto and spaced from the axis f said lever pivot for movements with andwith respect to the lever toward and from a position for latchingrelation with said keeper, spring means normally tending to swing saidlatch bolt unit about its pivot axis on said lever and relative to saidlever toward said latching relation position with respect to saidkeeper, spring means normally tending to swing said lever about itspivot axis on said housing toward said keeper, toggle means including aspring carried by said housing and operatively associated with saidlever in a toggle relationship therewith for movements between oppositesides of a dead-center position, means for limiting the swingingmovements of said latch bolt unit about its pivot on said lever, meansfor moving said toggle means to one side of dead-center to effectrelease of the bolt from the keeper, and means for tripping said togglemeans to effect engagement of the bolt with the keeper.

12. A latch adapted to be mounted on either member of a cabinet bodymember having an opening with a closure member for said openmg andcooperative with a latch bolt keeper adapted to be mounted on the otherof said members, said latch comprising a housing, a lever pivotallymounted by one of its ends on a fixed pivot on said housing formovements of its other end relative to the housing toward and from saidkeeper, a latch bolt unit including a keeper-engageable bolt pivotallymounted on a xed pivot on said lever intermediate of the pivoted andopposite ends thereof and having its pivot axis substantially parallelto and spaced from the axis of said lever pivot for movements with andwith respect to the lever toward and from a position for latchingrelation with said keeper, spring means normally tending to swing saidlatch bolt unit about its pivot axis on said lever and relative to saidlever toward said lat'ching relation position with respect to saidkeeper, spring means normally tending to swing said lever about itspivot axis on said housing toward said keeper, toggle means including aspring carried by said housing and operatively associated with saidlever in a toggle relationship therewith for movements between oppositesides of a deadcenter position, cooperative means on said latch boltmember, housing and lever for limiting the swinging movements of saidlatch bolt unit about its pivot on said lever, means for moving saidtoggle means to one side of dead-center to effect release of the boltfrom the keeper, and means including a portion of said latch bolt memberfor tripping said toggle means to eiect engagement of the bolt with thekeeper.

WILLIAM O. BURKE.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,181,493 Nave Nov. 28, i9392,256,447 Burke Sept. 16, 1941 2,341,416 Anderson et al. Feb. 8, 19442,342,250 Burke Feb. 22, 1944 2,359,150 Peglow Sept. 26, 1944 2,385,961Anderson Oct. 2, 1945 2,448,083 Curtiss Aug. 31, 1948 2,451,381 CurtissL Oct. 12, 1948

